As many as 2,000 AYUSH doctors working on contract basis for State-run hospitals resigned en masse on Thursday. They are upset that their long-standing demands such as regularisation, wage revision, social security, and provision of personal protection equipment kits have not been fulfilled.
They include 590 doctors working in primary health centres and around 1,400 doctors employed under the Rashtriya Bal Swasthya Karyakram, a Centrally funded scheme. They submitted their resignation letters to the deputy commissioners in respective districts.
“Across the State, AYUSH doctors are in the forefront of COVID-19 management. We are working for very low wages when compared to MBBS doctors whose services have been regularised. It is humanly impossible to work for such low wages. The Central and State governments have neglected our demands for health insurance and social security benefits. Successive governments have remained blind to our sufferings, hence we are resigning,” said a letter by the doctors. The letter is signed by Jeevanesh Hiremath, State president of the Association of AYUSH Doctors in the Department of Health and Family Welfare.
“We have worked without PPE kits since February. The government gave us PPE kits only four days ago,” said Harsha Patil, an AYUSH doctor who has resigned.
